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If you choose to take the language aptitude exam, you will take this exam after a break on the same day
that you take the OPM Exam just described. The language aptitude exam is an Artificial Language Exam.
You must demonstrate your ability to learn a foreign language by manipulating vocabulary and grammar
in an artificial language.
You will be presented with a booklet describing the artificial language. The booklet will include two
vocabulary lists. One list, presented alphabetically by English word, gives the English word and its
artificial-language equivalent (Example: alien = huskovy). The other list is alphabetized by artificial
language and gives the English equivalent of each artificial-language word (Example: friggar = to work).
The booklet includes a glossary of grammatical terms. Grammatical terms have the same meaning in both
English and the artificial language. (Example: An adjective is a word that describes a noun.) Finally, the
booklet sets out grammar rules for the artificial language. (Example: The feminine singular of a noun,
pronoun, and adjective is formed by adding the suffix ver to the masculine singular form.)
The exam contains four different types of questions, 50 questions in all. The parts are not separately
timed. You are allowed 1 hour and 45 minutes to study the accompanying booklet and answer the
questions. The artificial language test is a test of your ability to reason and to manipulate the vocabulary
and grammar of a foreign language. It is not a memory test. It does not test your ability to remember
vocabulary or language. You may keep the booklet open in front of you and refer to it frequently as you
answer the questions. You do not need to memorize any information.
The Office of Personnel Management does not provide official sample questions for the Artificial
Language test. The following exam description can give you a feeling for the phrasing and style of
questions, but without a vocabulary and grammar list, you cannot even attempt to answer these unofficial
sample questions.
The first part consists of questions 1 to 20. In this part, you must identify correctly translated words.
For example: You may be given an English sentence such as "He injured the man" followed by a sentence
in the artificial language such as "Yer Zelet wir huskoy." You must then mark (A) if only #1 is translated
1
2
3
4
correctly, (B) if only #2 is correct, (C) if only #3 is correct, (D) if two or more are correct, and (E) if none
are correct.
The second part consists of questions 21 to 30. In this part, you must choose which of five choices
correctly translates an underlined word or group of words from English into the artificial language.
[Example: There is the lost boy. (A) bex kapkoy, (B) wir kapvoy, (C) bex kapvoy, (D) wir kapkoy,
(E) bex kapyok.]
The third part, questions 31 to 42, puts a slightly different spin on translation into the artificial
language. You are given an incomplete sentence in the artificial language and must complete it with the
correctly translated English word, being conscious not only of the vocabulary word but also the
grammatical form. [Example: Synet bex avekoy (man). (A) ekapiko, (B) ekapiver, (C) kopiak,
(D) ekapiak, (E) pokiver.]
The fourth part, questions 43 to 50, requires you to correct a sentence in the artificial language. You
must change the form of the italicized word or words in the sentence according to instructions given in
parentheses. [Example: Yer bongar wir broukon (present tense). (A) bongaro, (B) bonagar,
(C) bongarara, (D) bongo, (E) bongit.]
